FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Dec. 22, 2016
MDTA POLICE TO CONDUCT SOBRIETY CHECKPOINT
AT KEY BRIDGE TOMORROW NIGHT
Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over
#MakeAPlan
BALTIMORE, MD - To educate the public and to prevent alcohol-related crashes, the Maryland Transportation Authority (MDTA) Police will conduct a sobriety checkpoint Friday night, Dec. 23, at the Francis Scott Key Bridge (I-695) toll plaza in Baltimore.
"During the holiday season, alcohol-related crashes are at their highest. If you do go out and drink, plan for a sober ride home," said MDTA Police Chief Colonel Jerry Jones.
During the checkpoint, the MDTA Police will distribute information about laws and penalties for driving while intoxicated or while under the influence of alcohol and drugs. Motorists caught driving while impaired will be arrested and prosecuted.
According to a recent study by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration,
drivers with an alcohol level of 0.15 percent were 12 times more likely to crash than sober drivers. The study also revealed that marijuana users were about 25 percent more likely to be involved in a crash than drivers with no evidence of marijuana use.
To date, MDTA officers have arrested nearly 930 impaired drivers in 2016.
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